What does maroon mean?
Maroon is chiefly a dark reddish-brown color, as in maroon shoes, a maroon shirt, or a room painted a deep maroon. It can also be a noun referring to that color. In its older and still figurative sense, to maroon someone means to leave them isolated, helpless, or cut off from escape, as if they have been abandoned on a deserted island. The verb is especially associated with maritime disaster, but it can describe any situation in which a person is cut off from help. Marooned is especially common in stories about lost sailors, stranded travelers, or people trapped by extreme circumstances. The word is memorable because it links a familiar color with the dramatic image of being cast away: someone marooned is not merely left behind, but left without a practical way to get back.
Dark reddish-brown in color.
"The room was painted a rich maroon."
Common in descriptions of clothing, furnishings, vehicles, and other objects.
A dark reddish-brown color; also, a person or thing left stranded or isolated.
"The cabin was painted maroon and cream."
To leave someone or something stranded without help or a means of escape.
"The disabled ship marooned its passengers on the coast."
Often used in maritime contexts or figuratively for severe isolation.
The plural is used for people or things that have been marooned, and for objects or items of the maroon color when a count is needed.
"The rescue team searched for the maroons on the island."
Before maroon meant a color, it meant to abandon shipmates on an island, so the word carries an enduring sense of isolation and being cast away.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does maroon come from?
The word comes through French marron, meaning chestnut or chestnut-colored, in an Old French sense ultimately associated with a chestnut-brown color. In English, the color sense was established before the verb meaning 'to abandon at sea' appeared in the early 18th century. The verb developed from the practice of putting people ashore on an uninhabited island, leaving them to fend for themselves, and later acquired broader figurative uses.
Related word forms
How maroon is actually used
The color sense is common in British and American English. The verb sense is somewhat literary but remains especially associated with maritime situations; 'marooned' is more common in everyday use.
Easily confused with maroon
Maroon can be a dark reddish-brown color or mean to strand someone, whereas a moron is a person considered foolish or unintelligent.